Meditation Chip Brogden

December 10

An Indescribable Christ

“That you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”
EPHESIANS 3:17-19

We ought to meditate on this daily and ask the Lord to open our eyes to see the height, depth, width, length, and breadth of this JESUS Whom we say we serve. May God deliver us from our own idea, concept, perception, and illusion of a small Christ and give us revelation into the preeminence of His Son.
When we see Christ as All in All then it will be impossible for us to ever again be reduced to the small, the trivial, the petty things which occupy us and waste so much of our time. Our only hope is seeing a Christ that fills us, a Christ that is greater than us, a Christ that is larger than we can fathom, an indescribable Christ that overshadows, overwhelms, and consumes us through and through!
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden

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December 8

Strengthened By Testing

“Count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.”
JAMES 1:2,3

The Lord does not test us with the intent of making us stumble. That is the way the adversary works. No, the Lord indeed tests us and proves us, but His Way is to strengthen us in the testing, whereas the devil wants to weaken us in the testing. It has been said that our circumstances will either leave us better or they will leave us bitter. Ultimately, the decision is ours. We should steadfastly resist the temptation of satan, but we should also learn to distinguish between the assault of the enemy and the proving of the Lord.
Jesus already knows what He is going to do. In His mind it is as good as done. But He waits, and He proves us. Not because He does not know us, but because we do not know ourselves.
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden

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December 9

Boasting in Infirmities

“Most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities,
that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
2 CORINTHIANS 12:9

If you want to boast, take pride in the things that make you weak, for when you are weak, you are strong – in Him. Be afraid of the praise and acceptance of others, for they are the fertilizer for the self-important and grandiose thoughts that are yours by nature anyway, which spring up in the shallow ground of your carnal mind. Carry about the Death of the Lord so you may have the Life of the Lord. Be ready to suffer with Him, that you may reign with Him.
Source: Letter to A Reluctant Prophet by Chip Brogden
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December 5

To Be With Him

“Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me.”
JOHN 17:24

You are called to be with Jesus. That is your calling. That is the primary thing, the highest ministry. Going forth to preach or do anything else is of secondary importance. We should be with Jesus; after that, He might send us forth to preach. But before Jesus said, “Go into all the world” He said, “Be with Me.”
The call of the Lord is not more important than the Lord of the call. The work of the Lord must not replace the Lord of the work. No amount of ministering FOR the Lord will make up for a lack of ministering TO the Lord. And knowing the Word of God does not necessarily mean that we know the God of the Word.
Source: The Church in the Wilderness by Chip Brogden

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December 6

The Meaning of the Cross

“I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes
in Me, though he may die, he shall live.”
JOHN 11:25

The Cross does not represent Death – it represents Life out of Death. Jesus does not refer to Himself as the Crucifixion and the Death, but He calls Himself the Resurrection and the Life. Even so, this Resurrection and Life implies that there has been a very real, thorough death. You cannot resurrect someone who has not died.
God wills that all of us stand together with Christ on resurrection ground where death has no power over us. That is certainly a powerful ground to stand upon, but there is no direct route to get there. The path to resurrection takes us through the Cross, for there can be no Resurrection and Life apart from crucifixion and death.
Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden

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December 3

Amen: The Final Word

“For of Him and through Him and to Him
are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.”
ROMANS 11:36

The final word is: “Amen – may it be so, henceforth and forever.” We proclaim it, not to bring it forth (as if it depended upon our confession), but to acknowledge it as a present reality which is breaking forth upon all that stands in opposition to it, and to establish once and for all that we have chosen – individually and corporately – to align ourselves with God’s Ultimate Purpose and Will, making us co-workers together with Him towards the Goal of CHRIST FILLING ALL THINGS.
He MUST increase, and all else MUST decrease (John 3:30). We can observe this decrease taking place in the world around us, but we should also be able to see that WE, the Self, is being decreased in order to prepare us for the Kingdom in which it is no longer “I” that live as a thing outside of Christ, but it is Christ Who lives in me, conforming me to His image, and reproducing His character and nature within me (Galatians 2:20).
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

December 4

Spiritual Armor

“Put on the armor of light… put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh… put on the whole armor of God.”
ROMANS 13:12,14; EPHESIANS 6:11

May I frankly say that anyone trusting in “spiritual armor” as a thing in and of itself is going to fail miserably. Anyone relying upon a faith-formula or a spiritual warfare method is going to see both the formula and the method eventually meet with defeat. Why? Because God has not given us a formula or a method: He has given us His Son.
He does not give us a ritual or ceremony to follow, He says, “Put on the Lord Jesus.” Having the Lord Jesus, I have the Whole Armor of God. It is not necessary to ask for each piece of armor, or to confess anything, or to do anything. It is only necessary, having put on the Whole Armor of God, to “stand therefore.” It is only necessary, having put on the Lord Jesus, to abide in Him.
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden
©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

December 2

Power Disguised in Weakness

“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart
- these, O God, You will not despise.”
PSALM 51:17

We must never seek the power of Pentecost without first tasting the suffering of the Cross. The Cross is Power disguised in Weakness. There is a saying, “Absolute power corrupts absolutely.” We can just as well say that spiritual power obtained apart from the weakness of the Cross will corrupt also.
This is why the Lord leads us first to Calvary, then on to Pentecost. We dare not bypass Calvary in our haste to experience Pentecost.
Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden

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December 1

The Ultimate Paradox

“We preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God, because the foolishness of God is wiser than men.” 
1 CORINTHIANS 1:23-25

There is tremendous power released in this Cross. Of course, this heavenly power is disguised in earthly weakness, and so it appears to be foolishness to those without understanding. Even Christians often underestimate the comprehensiveness of its work, and mostly think of the Cross in terms of their personal salvation. Certainly that is part of the work of the Cross, but there is far more.
In the Cross we see all the “Kingdom Conundrums” gathered together into one dramatic act. The Cross embodies the ultimate paradox of spiritual life: that wisdom is revealed through foolishness; that giving up is necessary in order to gain; that true strength is found in the midst of weakness; that one must die before they can truly live.
Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden

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November 30

The Purpose of Ministry

“He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” 
EPHESIANS 4:11-13

Each of these ministry functions fulfill different roles, but their purpose is the same, and that is, to bring ALL of us into that same fullness, that same spiritual maturity, that same experiential knowing, which the elders themselves enjoy. Thus, He gives SOME, till we ALL… SOME, till we ALL… SOME, till we ALL. Do you see this? And He will continue to give SOME till we ALL. Once He has ALL then the work is complete and these ministries will no longer be needed. Until then they ARE needed, and they are critical to God’s Purpose.
Source: The Church in the Wilderness by Chip Brogden

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November 29

In Due Season

“In due season we shall reap...”
GALATIANS 6:9

The good news is that even if the Ekklesia has been underground, it is still growing and developing. When the season is right it will burst forth and once again those who have eyes to see will indeed discern the blade, the head, and the full grain in the head. In fact the blades have already broken ground in several places and we are even beginning to see some grain taking shape. If you have traced the recovery of the Heavenly Order so far then you know there have been many obstacles and hindrances to God’s Will over the last six thousand years or so of the history of mankind.
So far God has defeated everything that rose up to challenge His Purpose in Christ. Not only has He defeated it, but He has actually used evil to bring about good and further increase His Son. The Scriptures provide us with every expectation and assurance that God will continue to do the same with our generation. He is very much an active part of world affairs, whether they be secular or sacred.
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogden

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November 28
Blessed With Every Spiritual Blessing

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Christ.”
EPHESIANS 1:3

Most Christians are taught to approach God and seek these things when they are conscious of some lack. Eventually we must learn that we have everything in Christ already. That thing called “patience” that we are so diligently seeking is not a thing at all, it is Christ. “Victory” is no longer a “thing,” it is a Man.
And so it is with everything else we need. What a difference it makes to realize that He HAS (past tense) blessed us already – not with three or five or twenty blessings – but with EVERY spiritual blessing. However many there may be, we have them all. Where and how has He done this? Thank God, it was done the moment we received Christ and entered into Him as our All in All. God would have us seek Him first, and not His things. To Him there is no “thing,” for they are all summed up into Christ.
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

Hey Elaine

A buzzard flies overhead, looking for death and decay, and finds
exactly what he looks for.

A butterfly flies overhead, looking for flowers, and finds what he
looks for in the very same space.

What's the lesson?

You can go through life like a buzzard and see everything wrong.

Or you can go through life like a butterfly and see what's
beautiful.

You become what you spend time looking at.

Buzzards are ugly and scraggly.

Butterflies are beautiful and colorful.

So this week we celebrate Thanksgiving here in the United States.

It's where most of us try to become butterflies for a few days
and think about what we have to be thankful for.

Next week, some of those butterflies will turn into buzzards.

But I encourage you to see thanksgiving as a spiritual quality that
you practice continually (not just for a day).

How?

Do what my grandmother always did: "Count your blessings."

Think about all that God has done.

Think about the mountains already climbed, the rivers already
crossed, the storms already weathered.

You know, God is still working "all things together for
good" in your life!

Look for the flowers and you'll find them all around.

I'm thankful for my family, and for the friendships we have
through The School of Christ.

What are you thankful for?


I am your brother,
Chip Brogden
http://TheSchoolOfChrist.Org

PO Box 552, Canandaigua, NY 14424, USA

November 27

The Heavens Do Rule

“God does not live in temples made by man.”
ACTS 17:24 ESV

We are not zealous for the establishment of any earthly nation, but for a heavenly nation of kings and priests (Revelation 5:10). We are not praying for the building of a physical temple, but a spiritual temple, a house of living stones, of which Jesus Christ is the Cornerstone, Builder and Architect. We are not looking for the appearance of an earthly Messiah, but a Heavenly Messiah, Who is building His Ekklesia upon the earth; we are not of the earth. This is not our home, for we are from above. Though in the world, we are not of it. We will not eat its meat or drink its wine, and we will not bow down to its idols. Though we live in the shadow of Babylon, we are not afraid of its fiery furnace or its den of lions, for our God is able to deliver us.
The heavens do rule. We affirm it boldly and confidently, regardless of appearances to the contrary. The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory belongs to God (Matthew 6:13) – not man, not the devil, not the nations of this world.
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogden
©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

November 25

The Key to All Revelation

“In [Christ] are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”
COLOSSIANS 2:3

It is not that God desires to give us revelation into the many things, but for us to have the Revelation of Jesus Christ. By apprehending Him we will subsequently gain insight in those “things.”
To seek revelation into the “things” apart from the Revelation of Christ fails to give Christ the preeminence. We dare not circumvent the knowledge of Him in the pursuit of “things,” even spiritual things, for they are all summed up into Him.
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden
©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

November 26

His Word is Truth

“Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.”
JOHN 17:17

I am frequently asked how do we partake of this fullness? How do we walk in it? What practical application exists for living according to this Truth? We see what God says, but we also see our situation. We see Jesus, but we also see ourselves. God says we are complete in Him, but we say we are incomplete. God says we are blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ, but we say we still need this or that. What is the problem here? Is it not a glaring discrepancy between what God says and what we say? Whose word is more reliable?
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

November 24

Accomplished Through the Cross

“We were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.”
ROMANS 6:4

The Cross is the means by which God reduces us to Christ, that we may be raised to new Life. What cannot be accomplished in a lifetime of self-effort is easily accomplished in God through the Cross.
We may take many shortcuts along the way and attempt to escape the inevitable, but the day we cease striving and meekly accept the Cross we find everything is done for us.
Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden


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November 22

When Men Fail

“The anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you.”
1 JOHN 2:27

It was God who gave apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers to His Ekklesia, to encourage, edify, and establish all of us deeper into Christ. Can the Holy Spirit in John contradict the Holy Spirit in Paul? By no means.
What then? John was the sole survivor of the first twelve apostles, and now he is very old. Naturally he is concerned with the welfare of the Ekklesia after his death. So God comforts John, and then John comforts us, with this truth: even if we do not have access to the apostle, or prophet, or evangelist, or pastor and teacher, we are still instructed inwardly. The Ekklesia that Jesus is building is not dependent upon the great men or women of God. We are grateful to the ministry gifts when we have them, but we are not dependent upon them for our Life. The Life is greater than the ministers through which it may be ministered.
Source: The Church in the Wilderness by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!


Hey Elaine

Sometimes we oppose something emotionally and we don't even know
why.

Usually it's because we're trying to defend something
we've come to believe as Truth.

But a lover of Truth is open to the possibility of alternative
interpretations of Scripture, rightly balancing what has been
previously learned with what has yet to be discovered.

I think that's a skill that can be developed.

And you'll need it for these two messages:

THE FIG TREE AND THE VINEYARD (Matt. 21)
http://theschoolofchrist.org/?p=15255

THE MARRIAGE SUPPER (Matt. 22)
http://theschoolofchrist.org/?p=15255

(Scroll all the way down to the bottom of the page to get them.)

Have a super weekend!


I am your brother,
Chip Brogden
http://TheSchoolOfChrist.Org

November 23

Power Through Weakness

“God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong.”
1 CORINTHIANS 1:27 ESV

The Wisdom of God teaches us differently. This Wisdom tells us that the weak things are chosen to overcome the strong things, and power works concurrently with weakness.
God desires to give you power, but that power only comes through weakness. Any power not obtained through weakness is illegitimate, no matter how spiritual it appears. The only legitimate power is granted to those who have been made weak. Power is birthed in weakness. Many exude a certain “power,” but there is not the corresponding weakness. Hence, the power only gives them an occasion for boasting. To remedy this, God has ordained that all who would have His power must first be weakened and made empty – we refer to this as being “broken.” The purpose of weakness and suffering is to open the way for His Power. The instrument God uses to weaken us is the Cross. Therefore, the Cross is power through weakness.
Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

Paul might have buckled under the pressure. He certainly grew weary. He certainly was misunderstood, rejected, and persecuted. He suffered so much. What kept him going? Verse 29 of Colossians 1 says, “To this end I labor, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.” He labors, and he strives. That’s the way Paul was. Laboring and striving, even when he was laboring and striving for the wrong things, he was absolutely dedicated to the mission. But there is something more extraordinary at work in Paul, something more than sheer willpower or determination.
I tell you willpower will only take you so far. Willpower is overrated. We need something else, something supernatural, something that does not rely upon my limited willpower. What was it? “I strive according to HIS WORKING which works in me mightily.” It was not the strength of Paul, but the strength of Christ in Paul, and through this Christ, Paul said, “I can do all things” (Philippians 4:13). All things!
Source: The Church in the Wilderness by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

November 20

Times and Seasons

“It is not for you to know times or seasons that
the Father has fixed by His own authority.
Acts 1:7 ESV

They had asked, “Lord, will You at this time restore the Kingdom to Israel?” The response from Jesus is anticlimactic to the impatient. The King will not be forced, or rushed, or pushed into action. Jesus said, “It is not for you to know the times and the seasons.”
The Kingdom of God is progressive – growing up from a single seed into an abundant tree with many branches and much fruit. Those seedlings were just freshly planted in eleven men and they would not come to maturity all at once but over the course of many seasons of increase and decrease. We cannot speculate as to when He will return in the power and glory of His Kingdom. We must “watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.”
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

Hey Elaine,


I've been getting a lot of prayer requests lately, and I wanted
to let you know that I've been praying for you!

- For the preeminence of Christ in you (His Kingdom)

- For God's Purpose to be fulfilled in your life (His Will)

- For your spiritual, physical and material needs (daily bread)

- For your relationship with God and with others (forgiveness of sins)

- For total victory in your life (deliverance from evil)

- For the fullness of God's power and glory upon you!

Someone asked, "Why isn't everyone we pray for saved,
healed, and delivered?"

I don't know.

But...

A lot of people ARE saved, healed, and delivered through our
prayers.

So we continue to pray, and we leave the results to God.

Do you have a prayer need?

Do you have a praise report?

Let me know.


I am your brother,
Chip Brogden
http://TheSchoolOfChrist.Org


P.S. Earlier this year I recorded a video to introduce an
in-depth teaching series on the subject of prayer. If you
haven't seen it yet, check it out here:

http://theschoolofchrist.org/prevailing-prayer/

November 19

Grace is a Man

“All of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for ‘God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’”
1 PETER 5:5

The single requirement for grace is humility. But what is grace? Grace is more than just a theological term used to describe how we are saved. Grace is the power of God at work in my life to do what cannot be done in my own strength. Grace is energizing and proactive. When I have reached the end of myself then Grace Himself takes over and does what I am unable to do. In the first place, what I cannot do is save myself, and so I trust in the Grace of God, Jesus Christ, to save me. But Grace will not only bring me through the Gate; He will bring me down the Path. Grace does not just get me started in the right direction, but goes along with me every step of the way. For Grace is a Man!
Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

November 18

His Fullness

“Till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”
EPHESIANS 4:13

It is the FULLNESS of Christ that we are after, the revelation of Christ as He IN FACT IS. For too many Christians the Lord Jesus is “merely” their Savior. Thank God He is our Savior, but there is a depth and a richness bound up into the personage of Christ that goes far, far beyond “mere” salvation. Salvation is the narrow gate – coming into the fullness of Christ is the narrow path. The gate is only the entrance to something larger.
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

November 17

Apart From the Cross

“I determined not to know anything among you
except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.”
1 CORINTHIANS 2:2

We can quote these teachings of Jesus, seek to imitate Him as our Example, strive to walk the narrow Way, and even accomplish many good deeds in His Name. But apart from the Cross these activities are wood, hay and stubble.
In calling us to come back to the Cross, God is asking us to lay down our lives and embrace the Wisdom of death, burial, resurrection, and ascension in order to live as sons and daughters within the Kingdom of God. Apart from the Cross we can neither enter the Kingdom nor live in the Spirit, no matter how great the desire. For apart from the Cross, we do not know what it is to turn the other cheek, to go the extra mile, to love our enemies, to pray for those who persecute us. Apart from the Cross, we do not know what it is to submit to the will of God, accept suffering, and cast ourselves upon Him. Apart from the Cross, we do not know what Resurrection is.
Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

November 15

Thw Spirit of the Law

“Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?”
JOHN 8:4,5

Legally they were on solid ground. But to her accusers, Jesus replied, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” And when they all left, being convicted by their own conscience, He said to the woman: “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and sin no more” (John 8:12). We must conclude that however good the Law was, it did not represent God’s highest, or God’s best.
Jesus represents the holiness and purity of the Law but emphasized the part that had been too long overlooked: grace and humility. He came to address the deeper issues of the heart, and in so doing, showed us what God really intended from the beginning. He did not destroy the Law, He superseded the Law! Thus He fulfilled the spirit of the Law – even if it sometimes appeared as if He did not follow the letter of the Law.
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

November 16

No Permission Needed

“When it pleased God… to reveal His Son in me…I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me.”
GALATIANS 1:15-17

Paul did not seek credentials, ordination, or affiliation with a human organization. He did not wait for anyone to confirm the call on his life. He did not seek for hands to be laid on him. Preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ was renegade enough, but to preach the gospel to the Gentiles was a departure from the norm for the Christians at that time. It would later prove to be quite controversial and divisive. Prudence would dictate that it would be better to check with the other apostles and get their opinion and feedback before striking out in a new direction. Yet, Paul says once he obtained revelation he had no need to confer with flesh and blood.
Why? Because he was a maverick, an independent spirit, a rebel? No, it is only because the Revelation of Jesus is sufficient guidance. Flesh and blood cannot add to or take away from the Revelation.
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

Hey Elaine!

Hopefully by now you've read the first part of my story...

All the little signposts leading me down a spiritual path towards an
encounter with God in 1983 that I still haven't gotten over (and
I hope I never do).

Previously I said a third thing happened "that night."

Actually it happened the same week, three days later, on a Wednesday
night.

I was back in church, still floating from my experience from Sunday.

Towards the end of the service a few people went forward to be
prayed for.

One of them was an elderly little lady with red hair that I had
never seen before.

She was "slain in the Spirit" as they used to call it...
fell right out and lay there for a long while, weeping.

That wasn't so unusual to me - not anymore.

What's unusual is what happened next.

She got up and looked around like she was trying to find someone.

Then she saw me and she came over, trembling, and took my hand in
her hand.

"Who is this boy? Who is this boy?" she kept saying.

(She didn't know me because she wasn't there three days ago
when everything happened.)

Finally someone told her who I was and what had happened to me the
past Sunday.

"I didn't know that," she said. "But I have to
tell you this. When I was over there praying a few minutes ago, I
had a vision."

She kept squeezing my hand and tears were streaming down her face.

"It was beauuuuuuuuutifulllllll," she said.  Just the way
she said it gave me goosebumps.

"I saw you standing in heaven... you were holding a Bible in
your hand..."

She closed her eyes and whispered, sweeping her arms in the air.

"And behind you... as faaaaar as I could seeeeee.... were all
the SOULS you had led to the Lord!"

By now some of you may be thinking, "O.K. Chip, we get it -
you've got a calling on your life! Enough already."

To be clear, I'm not sharing all this to impress you, but to
impress UPON you, that this is a lot for a 12-year-old boy to take
in.

I'm sharing it because it sets the stage for the big failure
that was bound to come.

All this happened just before the end of summer vacation, and when I
started middle school, the whole world knew that something had
happened to me over the summer.

I started a secret Bible Club at school and got in trouble with all
my teachers for handing out "propaganda" (that's what
one teacher called my Gospel tracts).

I would pray for classmates and lead them to the Lord.

When I wasn't in school, I would go out with people from the
church, knock on doors, and tell people about Jesus.

One day I accidently knocked on the door of a man who was the deacon
of the biggest Baptist church in town.

How did I know? He told me!

"Hey kid, I'm a deacon at ____ Baptist Church, and I
DON'T NEED WHAT YOU GOT!"

*** SLAMS THE DOOR IN MY FACE ***

I thought. "Huh? You don't need Jesus at the Baptist
Church??"

When I was 13 years old, the pastor invited me to preach, and when I
did, people came from miles around to witness it.

Thinking back on it now, it's a little crazy to let a kid
preach.

But I did. Several times. And God blessed it, somehow.

People at that church would call me their "Young Timothy."

But the kids in the youth group had a few other names for me...

Goody Two Shoes.

Preacher Boy.

"Here comes the Preacher Boy, are you gonna preach us a
sermon?"

Sometimes they would just irritate me to see if I would lose my
temper and say something bad. And if I did, they would say,
"Hypocrite! You're no better than us! Look what you
said!"

But I had one good thing going for me...

Karla and I started dating when we were 15.

We got married when we were 19.

By then I was an associate pastor. Karla and I took turns doing
every possible job in the church - you name the activity, and we
either led it or organized it.

I mainly preached, led worship, and taught Sunday school.

Karla organized the nursery, directed Vacation Bible School, and
helped me with the youth group.

Eventually a nearby church had a vacancy for a pastor, and someone
submitted my name for consideration. After a quick confirmation
process I became the pastor.

I was 23 years old.

No offense to anyone in their early 20's who may be reading this
- but 23 is way too young to be a pastor, no matter how gifted or
called you think you are!

What were they thinking?

Anyway, with such a great history behind me, everyone (including
me) had the highest expectations as I took over the reins of this
tiny little storefront church.

We did grow - new pastors always get some growth in the beginning,
just because you're new and everyone is excited.

But that soon passes, and then you realize there's still a lot
you don't know about people.

For example, I went to the hospital and prayed for the sister of one
of our members who had cancer.

The next day, they did an MRI and could not find the cancer. She was
healed!

Now, I'm not saying I did anything; clearly that was the Lord.

But (just speaking on a human level) when you pray for someone, and
they are healed of cancer, you would think that this would almost
guarantee that they would keep coming to your church, right?

Well, it didn't, and at the time I was amazed.

I was also amazed that I could preach and teach and do all the
"right" things and yet the church continued to decline.

My wife, my two little girls and I practically lived at the church,
working, working, working.

Keepin' it alive, keepin' it alive.

We held on for a couple of years before getting completely burned
out.

About that time, something really interesting happened...

A Hispanic man named "Joel" contacted me and wanted to see
me.

I set a time, and we met in my office at the church - the guy, along
with six or seven of his brothers.

Turns out they were all migrant workers from Mexico, living on the
edge of town.

Joel was a pastor to about 50 or 60 of these folks, with all their
families and kids.

He wanted to know if he could rent our church building on Sunday
afternoons so they could have a place to meet for worship (they
lived in single-wide trailers that were too small for all of them to
meet).

Of course, he had tried other churches but the people in our town
weren't receptive to the idea of letting Mexicans use their
facilities.

In fact, we were the only racially-mixed church in town.

I didn't ask him about his beliefs, or his teachings, or
anything.

I gave Joel a key and told him to use the building whenever he
wanted, rent-free.

Needless to say, they were all ecstatic.

The next Sunday, the place was packed and overflowing; they had the
music going and it was a real celebration. I even preached for them
through an interpreter.

Now the funny part is...

As time went on, the Hispanic congregation kept getting bigger and
bigger, while my congregation was getting smaller and smaller.

That's when I did something that didn't earn me any brownie
points with the denomination, but it was the right thing to do.

I gave the whole church over to Joel, and explained why.

He said, "But brother Chip, we don't want to be part of
your denomination."

I laughed and told him I didn't care about that.

He said, "But brother Chip, the landlord won't like what
you're doing."

I told him I would sublease the building to him, and as long as he
paid the rent, the landlord couldn't do anything about it.

So that's how my first church ended - a great social, moral and
spiritual victory, where we did the right thing and helped people
who needed help.

And yet, personally, I felt like a failure.

I was happy for Joel, but I couldn't figure out why God would
bless his congregation and not bless mine.

At first, of course, I was relieved to have the whole church thing
over with.

Then I was kind of hurt.

Then I was kind of depressed.

Then I was kind of angry and bitter.

Where did I go wrong?

What about all the wonderful things people said about me - all those
"souls" I would lead to the Lord?

Nothing made sense.

I was disappointed with people, of course.

I was disappointed with myself.

But mostly...

I was disappointed with God.

Maybe you're going through a similar situation.

Something isn't going the way you think it should.

Maybe people have hurt you.

Maybe you feel like a failure.

Maybe you wonder, "If God loves me, why would He allow this to
happen to me?"

I don't have all the answers.

But in my case, God has always used "failures" to reveal
Himself to me on a deeper level.

Because there are some things you just can't learn until you go
through some things you'd rather not go through.

Disappointment with God can be something that drives a wedge between
the two of you, or...

It can motivate you to press into Him more deeply.

Well, as a 25-year-old ex-pastor, I knew I had to choose between
getting down and out or getting up and getting on.

It's the same choice you have to make, whatever you're
facing right now.

And when I finally became determined to know the Truth, the Truth
was revealed.

Stunningly, brilliantly, devastatingly beautiful Truth!

But I'll have to save that for another email.



I am your brother,
Chip Brogden
http://TheSchoolOfChrist.Org

Hey Elaine,

If you read my testimony then you know one of the turning points in
my life was the discovery that not only is Christ in me, but I am in
Christ.

Seeing yourself in Christ sure changes your perspective on things.

One of the biggest changes in me had to do with spiritual
warfare.

You know...

Binding, loosing, fighting, wrestling, rebuking, claiming, etc.

There's a place for those things sometimes.

But too many people use those "things" as ways to
"get" a victory that they do not possesses.

That is, they see themselves in a losing situation, and they
approach spiritual warfare with the mindset of someone working their
way up a difficult mountain, trying to get the victory.

That's a lot of work, and sets you up for failure.

You don't have to ATTAIN something you have already OBTAINED.

When I saw myself seated TOGETHER with Christ, "far above all
principality and power," I realized I didn't have to work
myself into a position of victory.

I am there already, seated with Christ.

So are you.

Victory is a Man, not a Method.

If you'd like to explore this further, this writing will help
you:

http://theschoolofchrist.org/?p=154

Onward!

I am your brother,
Chip Brogden
http://TheSchoolOfChrist.Org

November 14

The Most High Rules

“The Most High rules in the kingdoms of men.”
DANIEL 4:17

Christ is increasing and filling all things. Have you seen this? If you have, then embrace it, submit to it, cooperate with it, be in harmony with it, order your life around it, demonstrate it to the world around you, and pray for its fulfillment.
Get aligned with something and Someone higher and greater than yourself. For when you see God’s Purpose, and you adjust your life according to that Purpose, and you consistently pray for the fulfillment of that Purpose, then His Purpose cannot be stopped; His Will cannot be frustrated; His Kingdom cannot be defeated. Heaven singles you out and Hell trembles with fear. You just became undefeatable! You just joined the Remnant.
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

Hey Elaine

How's your week so far?

I just posted two more messages from the Matthew series:

"MOSES PERMITTED YOU" (Matt. 19)
http://theschoolofchrist.org/?p=15255

THE LAST AND THE LEAST (Matt. 20)
http://theschoolofchrist.org/?p=15255

(Scroll all the way down to the bottom to get them.)

The first one brings up an interesting point: just because God
permitted or allowed something in the past doesn't mean it's
His highest or best intention.

Even God sometimes settles (temporarily) for something less than
ideal because of the hardness of our hearts.

Listen to the message to see what Jesus meant.

I sound awful in the second recording because I had a cold... but
Truth is Truth, and this one will give you something to think
about also. Just don't judge me on the delivery!

Are you getting anything out of these messages? If so, I'll keep
posting them.


I am your brother,
Chip Brogden
http://TheSchoolOfChrist.Org

PO Box 552, Canandaigua, NY 14424, USA

November 13

Press Toward the Goal

“I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”
PHILIPPIANS 3:14

God has a purpose for the universe: that in all things Christ would have the preeminence. This is the Heavenly Bullseye. Since you, dear reader, are part of the universe, you are one of those “all things.” So this purpose includes you.
Actually, this is the same purpose He had in mind for Adam: that Christ would have the preeminence in him. But Adam chose an independent path and failed to give Christ the preeminence. He took the preeminence for himself. Adam missed the mark, which is a life submitted to, and totally dependent upon, God.
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

November 12

God's Response to Spiritual Decline

“Who is he who overcomes the world, 
but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?”
1 JOHN 5:5

The Lord’s answer to a state of decline is to reveal Himself and His eternal purpose. Once the Lord has established for Himself a people that will represent His interests, then He will move immediately to secure, protect, establish, and strengthen the Remnant. Here is what I want us to see. When we align ourselves with God’s Thought, with God’s Kingdom, and with God’s Will in Christ, we are invincible.
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogden


©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

November 11

Hidden Manna, Secret Name

“To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.”
REVELATION 2:17

The manna is HIDDEN and the name is SECRET. The Lord is doing a work, but that work is, for the most part, hidden and secret. If we are always looking for something out in the open and in plain view then we will miss the deeper workings of God below the surface.
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

Hey Elaine

God put it to me very bluntly the other day:

"While you're preparing, people are perishing."

I said, "But I can't do it myself."

He said, "Ask for help."

I said, "OK, help me."

He said, "No, ask the Body of Christ."

So I've got some pretty exciting news to share with you.

But first, a little background.

Even when we were still going to church, our biggest burden was for
discipleship.

We would see people going forward to receive the Lord, and then a
lot of them disappeared, and we always wondered what happened to
them.

So we have always focused on leading people down a simple,
Biblical, Christ-centered path towards spiritual maturity.

In 2002, I was hired by a certain Christian television network to
do just that.

Or so I thought.

They saw that I had a gift for helping people grow, and that I
understood how to reach people online, so they wanted me to direct
their online follow-up and discipleship program.

I accepted their offer, and they flew us down to Costa Rica to
visit one of the television stations to "get God's
vision" for the work.

Well, we got a vision all right - we just didn't know if they
could handle what God was showing us.

Because what we saw was a way to reach people with Christ-centered
teaching that emphasized Relationship instead of Religion.

I thought that's why they hired me in the first place.

As it turned out, our vision didn't match their vision, so I
was fired.

But we had already said that regardless of what happened, we knew
that God had given us a vision for Christ-centered discipleship
that would use the Internet to help people get the tools they
needed to grow spiritually RIGHT WHERE THEY ARE.

That's how The School of Christ came about, shortly after this
television ministry thing fell through.

Discipleship and Christ-centered spiritual maturity has been the
motivation behind every teaching, book, webinar, workshop, and
course we've written and produced ever since.

Fast forward to 2014...

I've written hundreds of articles, published more than a dozen
books, and recorded literally thousands of hours of Bible teaching.

I'm reaching a few thousand people every day with our daily
email messages.

Thousands of people have gone through our free online discipleship
course, "Embrace the Cross."

And yet, I still feel like we're only scratching the surface of
the original vision God gave us so many years ago!

In that vision, we were reaching EVERYBODY.

Not just out-of-church Christians.

Not just in-church Christians.

Not just people who "get it" and "see it" like
we do.

The vision, the message, and the gift was for THE WHOLE WORLD.

People say, "Chip, if you never do anything else, you've
already done enough."

I appreciate that.

But that's like telling a doctor in the middle of an Ebola
epidemic, "You've already saved enough people, so
don't worry about all the thousands of people still dying."

So many more people need to be touched.

People who don't know Jesus.

People who think they know Him, but don't.

People who do know Him, but still need help, encouragement, and
support from others.

It's bigger than me and Karla.

And frankly... it's bigger than just helping people who have
come out of church.

We're good at that.

But the whole world is dying.

I think we forget that sometimes.

We have become so concerned with being "in or out" of
church, each group trying to convince the other than
"their" way of doing (or not doing) church is the right
way, the only way, the Biblical way.

Right?

And while we're trying to figure out how to be/do/have church,
the rest of the world is wandering around in darkness.

If you aren't careful, you'll start thinking the darkness
is darker than the Light is bright.

You'll settle for hiding your light under a bushel, or just use
it to light the four corners of your tiny little room.

I have sensed that darkness this year and I have seriously
questioned if I am done.

This year has been terribly difficult for us, and for a lot of
people we hear from.

We have experienced almost total spiritual, emotional, and
financial bankruptcy this year.

And I know some of you are in the same place.

It's tempting to say, "I've done enough, because I
can't do anything else."

Instead, what God showed me is that I need to lift up my eyes and
set my sights higher.

He's been reducing us and getting us back to the heart of what
He wants us to do.

He reminded me of where the vision for The School of Christ came
from to begin with: to support a Christian television network that
would reach billions of people.

For the last ten years or so we've been building that support
system.

Now it's time to launch the platform for reaching those
billions and give them hope and encouragement.

That platform involves a new name and a new website to reach a new
audience.

No, we're not going to do it with satellite or cable television.

We're going to do it with Internet television!

Look...

I'm an author, and I'll always write.

But the world we live in wants to watch video.

Case in point: more than ONE BILLION unique users visit YouTube
EACH MONTH.

Internet video reaches more U.S. adults ages 18-34 than any cable
television network; but (more importantly) 80% of YouTube traffic
comes from outside the U.S.

That's the Harvest, just waiting to be harvested.

My old boss used to tell me, "It's going to take millions
and billions of dollars to reach the world!"

He was wrong.

We can do it now for a fraction of that.

But we need your help.

Here's what we're going to do...

We're going to create high-quality, streaming and on-demand
video programs that bring a Biblical perspective on current events,
family issues, and real-life problems that ordinary people are
concerned about.

We're going to bring in other people so they can share the
gifts and wisdom God has given them.

We're going to create an online community where people can
interact and support one another - we need to get the Body of
Christ helping each other.

And we're going to use The School of Christ to support anyone
who wants to go deeper in their relationship with God.

I realize I'm asking you to "take my word for it"
because I'm not ready to show you the website or reveal the
name just now.

We've been working on it behind the scenes and it's going
to be AWESOME when it's finally revealed!

But if you believe in what we have always stood for...

And if you're able and willing to help us....

Please go here to help us get this off the ground:
http://TheSchoolOfChrist.Org/give

Listen...

I know some of you may be struggling financially, and I'm not
asking you to give what you don't have.

I'm asking those of you who CAN to give what you can afford,
and only as the Lord leads.

Do you know why it has me taken over ten years to launch this?

Because in my pride I've always said, "I'll do it
myself."

I hate asking other people anything.

I REALLY hate asking people to give.

I don't even like asking for prayer!

But this isn't about me and my hang-ups and what I don't
like.

It's about believing in something, and knowing you can't do
it alone.

It's about you and me working together to fulfill God's
Kingdom and Purpose in the earth.

If you can't give, other ways to help include praying for us,
sharing this new website (to be announced) with other people, or
helping with the online community.

But right now, our most urgent need is for people who can support
us with a gift of any size to get the basic equipment, software,
tools, and services we need to produce high-quality programming
that is excellent and worthy of the Good News we're proclaiming
to the world.

Here's the link again:
http://TheSchoolOfChrist.Org/give

People are perishing... it's time to stop preparing and start
performing.

Thank you in advance... and I'll keep you posted on our
progress!


I am your brother,
Chip Brogden
PO Box 552, Canandaigua, NY 14424, USA

November 9
To Be With Him

“He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him...” 
MARK 3:14

The first order of business was not the preaching or the sending forth; it was simply being with Jesus. During those times of being alone and apart with Christ He revealed Himself to them in a deep way. They walked with Him, watched Him, and listened to Him for three and a half years. Just as importantly, they learned to walk with each other. They learned how to serve one another in love. When Jesus finally did send them forth to preach they actually had something worth sharing and worth listening to.
Your primary calling as a disciple is to BE with Jesus, because that is how you LEARN OF HIM. It is not learning about the Christian faith – that is a thing. It is not learning about Bible doctrine – that is a thing. It is not learning about Christian things or religious things or spiritual things. It is not learning about the Bible. It’s not even learning ABOUT Jesus, it is learning OF Jesus FROM Jesus.
Source: The Church in the Wilderness by Chip Brogden

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!